Interstella 5555: If the Hero Lived
by emutastic
Summary: What if Shep had lived? Drabbles. [Discontinued and old as HELL. ]
1. Discovery

For quite a while Arpegius didn't understood the relationship between his sister Stella and his friend Shep. Honestly, he didn't know it existed. Sure, he knew that the ship commander had feelings for Stella -because of his confession on what they believed to be his death bed- but after the group had returned to their planet, not much had been said about it. They band had become very close to their savior and all the time the two had spent together seemed quite normal.

Well at least at first.

Arpegius had become suspicious during an music award ceremony on their planet. The Crescendolls had been nominated for an award and Shep had tagged along as Stella's escort for the night. During the event Stella had excused herself to use the restroom. Only five minutes later Shep left get some fresh air, mumbling something about being "uncomfortably cramped in formal attire."

Both returned at the same with clothes looking disheveled, as if they had been pulled and tugged on and their hair out of place. The couple sat down looking as emotionless as possible and simply watched the show acting as if they didn't look like they just ran a marathon.

The after party had been even more interesting. The band mingled and chatted with the room, thanking the occasional fan or congratulator. Shep was typically shy at the parties, his newfound title as a hero often shook his humble person and hid the socialite that he truly was. So it was no shock to see him off in a corner, having a nice chat with Octave. Tired of entertaining, Arpegius decided to join the two. They talked for quite awhile and it wasn't until Octave's sly comment that he had noticed Shep appeared to have lipstick smudged on his mouth.

Shep's hand instantly jumped to his face and he wiped where the keyboardist had hinted. He stared at his hand and after realizing what was on his face there seemed to be a slight blush. Octave smirked.

Later that night, he noticed a strange mark on Stella's neck. When he tried to ask her about it though, she clamped up and insisted she knew nothing about it.

He was curious as hell, but he wasn't one to jump to conclusions.

It was the next day when Arpegius had walked into Stella's room (she was staying with her brother while her house was being painted) unannounced and found a half-naked Shep sitting on the edge of her bed that he clearly understood.

It was calm at first. Each of the three persons in the room looked absolutely shocked for mostly the same reason.

"Shep? Stella?"

"Arpegius?"

"Arpegius!"

" . . . "

The guitarist was happy for the two, don't get him wrong. But he was a big brother, and big brothers did not like discovering half naked men in their little sisters' rooms.

Arpegius took off after Shep while Stella remained in her room wondering what exactly had just happened.


	2. Reunion

Shep pushed his way through the crowd easily, being careful not to knock anyone over. The crowds were the one thing he didn't like about the concerts. Even though he now had connected to the band, he still preferred to get floor seats. You couldn't get the real concert experience in the seats, and he just liked being extra close to the stage.

"Hows' much longer till da concert starts?"

Shep looked up at the small child perched on his shoulders. He smiled "Soon enough Dorian, soon enough."

He was now at the front of the stage, ready to hold his place for the show. Dorian grabbed onto a lock of his father's hair, excitement getting the better of the blue skinned toddler. "Then I get to see her right?"

The man looked at his child again and chuckled. "It'll start soon, and afterwards we can go see her," he held up his pinky in a strange custom he had learned from earth "I promise."

The boy stuck his own pinky out and curled it around Shep's and then promptly stuck his finger in his mouth.

Shep looked around at the stage and sighed. The band that was finishing playing was nice, but he much preferred the Crescendolls. The stage appeared be close to ready, and soon enough Dorian would stop pushing his chubby fingers through Shep's hair. "It's been a long time seen you've seen them hasn't it?"

The child nodded enthusiastically. The band's tour had taken a toll on the two boys, even more so on Dorian who didn't get to fly out to see them with his father.

Shep opened his mouth to speak but it was cut short by the screams of joy as The Crescendolls approached the stage starting their first song.

Dorian's screams reached a wonderfully new decibel.

* * *

Stella sighed as she walked off the stage. Quietly she placed her bass in its stand, and pushed her bangs out of her face. Intermission couldn't have come soon enough.

To be honest, the tour had been exhausting. It felt amazing to be home again. She smiled at her bandmates and breathed out a laugh. They gave her a happy grin but she noticed their eyes were not focused on her.

Stella turned around and saw her two biggest fans standing in her line of vision. Shep had a bouquet of beautiful white flowers in one hand, but her attention was on the little blue boy that was being held on his hip with the other hand.

Shep grinned "Long time no see," he said.

Stella smiled and began to approach the two. Dorian leaped from his father's arms and made a run for the blonde bassist. The little boy's brown hair flopped in his face when Stella bent down to scoop him up in a tight hug.

She couldn't help but laugh as the little boy screamed:

"Mommy!"


	3. Nightmares

**A/N:** Sorry for the Hiatus! I had a lot going on, and there was a death of a loved one so I've been a little lost.

But thank you for all the favorites and reviews! They make my day! I'm so glad people actually like my stories! So here's the first of many more to come! If anyone has any requests, feel free to send them to me, I'd love to give ya treat.

And this one is for Lily-AnnieLestrange-Potter, hope this meets your fill! ;)

* * *

Stella has nightmares. Terrible, horrible, wake-up-screaming nightmares. They're becoming more and more constant now, with all that she has lived through. So far, she's managed to keep them a secret from her band mates; Stella isn't one to worry anybody.

So she puts up with the sleepless nights, and lays in bed for hours, too afraid to fall asleep, too scared to relive everything. Honestly, they're mostly about Shep and his almost death. Stella often will venture to his sleeping quarters and watch his chest rise and fall just to reassure herself: _he's alive, he's still alive_. There are tubes and machines hooked up to him keeping the pilot this way, but Stella can deal with it, as long as he's still here.

But sometimes they're an inconvenience. Like now.

She'd curled up on the couch Shep had provided for her. The living offered the most privacy on his tiny ship that was currently taking them back to their world. Sleep overtook her and within an hour she was up and crying; she was used to this, she could handle it.

"I knew I wasn't imagining those bags under your eyes."

Stella snaps her head up from her palms, not too sure how to handle the weakly Shep leaning against her doorway for support. His look is bittersweet, though whether it is from the pain of being up or her current situation. So she stifles a sob.

"The doctor said you shouldn't be up," she whispers, avoiding eye contact.

Shep gives her that lopsided smile he always does and somehow manages to struggle over to the makeshift bed. He perches at the foot of the couch and winces. She panics. "Shep please! Don't over-exert yourself!" While Stella flutters her fingers over his wounds Shep gently brushes them away and holds those tiny digits close to his calloused ones.

"Stella," he breathes and she finally looks him in the eyes. The bass player is trapped, and can't look away anymore. "You're not the only one having nightmares."

"Really?" she sniffles. He nods.

"You don't have to carry this burden alone Stella, we're all suffering. You don't have to be strong anymore." Her heart is pounding in her chest.

"What are yours about?"

". . . I dream I never got to tell you."

She loses it right then and there, breaking into a full on sob and throwing her face back into her hands. Shep slowly draws Stella close, tucking her head under his chin, his arms encircling her waist. She soothes her with words of comfort and love, patiently waiting for her to finish.

When Stella is finally able to speak again, he probes her mind about the fears that haunt her through the night. Stella fully opens herself up, and the words come pouring out about how scared she really was, all the pain that she'd been holding in to be strong, now gone.

"I was so scared I might lose you." she tells him.

And quietly Shep pulls the blankets around them both, eventually they're laying down, clinging to each other for comfort. As her eyelids become to heavy to open Stella feels emotions she believes she needs to express.

"I love you Shep."

He's quiet for awhile, but eventually she feels something warm pressed against her lips. Finally she realizes he's kissing her and returns they gesture tenderly. It tastes like salt, he must be crying too. Stella doesn't care.

With a strained voice, Shep replies, "I love you too Stella." He pulls her closer.

She sleeps peacefully that night.


	4. Survival

There was a time when Shep believed he would never see certain milestones in his life. A time where he laid bleeding out on the concrete floor of an abandoned warehouse, far far away from the planet he called home. The cliché elements of getting that awaited promotion, traveling to through the solar system to see the stars from a proper view, settling down, starting a family and growing old became distant ideas instead of once steady plans.

That was the factor of his impending death that scared him the most.

It wasn't until he stared into Stella's pretty green eyes that his longing for those moments to be a reality became so bittersweet. And he wanted them with her. Holding her close in his mind's creation the emotions of grief stirred inside him.

He had been content to die knowing Stella and her band-mates would make it home to safety, but now Shep could not let go. The fight was again ignited inside him. He wanted to survive to see those beautiful moments with his own eyes, alive and breathing.

Desperately clinging to the thin strings of life he has left Shep managed to pull through the night. Much longer than any of the group had expected. It was a fretful sleep as Stella slept next to him trying to quiet her tears, and Octave and Arpegius attempted to change his bandages with minimum amount of pain. But he was still alive in the morning.

While still grim, his desire for a full life became a little brighter.

To get through the pain and constant temptation to let the darkness take him, Shep dreamed of the life he wants. He saw himself sharing the view of the galaxy – _their _galaxy- with a blushing Stella. There's a wedding outside with Baryl, Octave and Arpegius as groomsmen. A little boy with blonde hair and his mother's green eyes.

These were his hope. His reason for survival.

The days until their salvation and eventual trip to the hospital were a blur to Shep. The hero dips in and out of consciousness. He remembers the shade on his face under a beautiful oak tree, enjoying the sun with the new companions. The feeling of anxiousness when the band tells him to rest they'll be back in just a second, and the panic when they return with an unconscious Stella. Her remembers hearing sirens. The lights being flashed into his eyes hurriedly, hushed unfamiliar voices

And then he woke up, all too aware of the pain in his chest. He did not know where he is, but with a quick glance to his right a sleeping beauty held his hand while passed out in a chair. She's blue and all natural again, too stunning for him to care if he'd died or not as long as he could remain here forever.

Shep will look back on this day as the moment he decided he wanted to be alongside her for this life and the next.

It was comforting to know that they were safe – they were going to survive now, no questions about that. But being thrown into the limelight had been terrifying – nothing in his training had prepared him for Earth reporters – but was handled with gentle coaching from the Crescendolls and the government of the area they had landed in. No longer did he have to imagine a future. No, that future was strapped securely in his hands simply waiting for the right time to emerge.

His new found treasure of a life was again threatened on the flight home. But Shep was absolutely determined now. There was no hoping, his need to live long enough to see those beautiful dreams come true was absolute.

And they made it. He had no idea how, but they made it.

He was rushed to the hospital upon landing, and remained their for a number of days. He has nightmares, and lies awake trying to make sure everything is really happening.

Stella comes to visit. Meekly she held his hand, giving a warm squeeze.

He could see the future, bright and clear.

Everything was going to be okay.


End file.
